Patent Application
20090277725
The present invention relates to a toe guard as defined in the preamble of claim 1.
In general, a toe guard (also called foot guard) is a safety device which is comprised in an elevator car and forms a wall extending downwards from the elevator car. When an elevator car stops between floors, there remains between the car and the landing floor a gap exposing the shaft. The toe guard is intended to cover this gap and thus to prevent a person escaping from the car onto the landing floor from falling into the shaft and/or to prevent any body part of the passenger from getting between the car and the landing floor. A toe guard suited for a small shaft bottom space is in itself very advantageous as it permits of a very low shaft bottom space. Shaft bottom space refers to the space remaining below an elevator car at the lowest stopping level.
For small shaft bottom spaces, specification EP 1 215 159 A2 discloses a toe guard for an elevator car, said toe guard comprising a movable panel provided with a locking device, and guide tracks mounted below the car in a substantially horizontal orientation. The panel, being guided and supported by the guide tracks, can be moved between a stowaway position and an operative position. In the stowaway position, the panel rests on the guide tracks in a substantially horizontal orientation, stowed away below the elevator car, where it can be locked in place by means of the locking device. In the operative position, the toe guard, supported by the guide tracks, is drawn out onto the landing floor and tilted to cover the gap between the car sill and the landing floor. In the operative position, the toe guard can be locked to the landing door jambs by means of the locking device, ensuring that the toe guard will not bend e.g. in consequence of a kick or other external exertion of force. The EP specification in question discloses a one-piece plate-like panel.
A problem with the above-mentioned prior-art bendable toe guard formed from a single panel part is that the panel in its operative position always has the same length and it can only be used to cover a gap of a certain size exposing the shaft between an elevator car and a landing floor, in a situation where the elevator car has stopped at a level between floors.
Further, telescoping toe guards consisting of two or more parts for small shaft bottom spaces are disclosed e.g. in specifications WO2005/121015 and FR2841886, but a typical feature of these toe guards is that they work on the shaft side and do not extend onto the landing floor and are not designed to be locked to the landing door jambs.
The object of the invention is to overcome the above-mentioned drawbacks.
A specific object of the invention is to disclose an improved toe guard whose length is variable according to need.
The toe guard of the invention is characterized by what is disclosed in the characterizing part of claim 1. Other embodiments of the invention are characterized by what is disclosed in the other claims. Inventive embodiments are also presented in the description part and drawings of the present application. The inventive content disclosed in the application can also be defined in other ways than is done in the claims below. The inventive content may also consist of several separate inventions, especially if the invention is considered in the light of explicit or implicit sub-tasks or with respect to advantages or sets of advantages achieved. In this case, some of the attributes contained in the claims below may be superfluous from the point of view of separate inventive concepts. The features of different embodiments of the invention can be applied in connection with other embodiments within the scope of the basic inventive concept.
According to the invention, the panel forming the toe guard comprises a first panel part, which, guided by guide tracks, is movable substantially between a position where it is drawn out onto a landing floor and a position where it is stowed away under the car, and a second panel part which, guided by the first panel part, is telescopically movable between a retracted extreme position where the first and second panel parts are disposed in a mutually nested and/or superposed relationship and an extended extreme position where the first and second panel parts are disposed substantially in a mutually adjacent relationship. When the toe guard is being moved from the stowaway position into the operative position, it assumes steplessly a suitable length between the aforesaid retracted extreme position and the aforesaid extended extreme position, depending in each case on the height position of the elevator car having stopped between floors relative to the landing floor level.
In an embodiment of the toe guard, the toe guard has been adapted to allow its use when the distance between the car and the landing floor is of the order of about 50 mm at a minimum and about 1 m at a maximum.
In an embodiment of the toe guard, the elevator comprises a safety circuit that prevents the elevator from moving in an error situation. The toe guard comprises a sensor connected to the safety circuit. The sensor is arranged to detect an error situation where the toe guard is not in the stowaway position. Safety circuit refers to a control circuit or a part of it that contains safety connections and contacts in series with the control coils of those contactors the opening of whose contacts causes the elevator to stop.
In an embodiment of the toe guard, the second panel part has a first side edge and a second side edge extending parallel to the guide tracks. The locking device comprises a first locking bolt, which is arranged to be movable between a locking position, in which the bolt projects from the first side edge in a substantially perpendicular direction, and a releasing position with the bolt retracted into/onto/under the second panel part. A second locking bolt is arranged to be movable between a locking position, in which the bolt projects from the second side edge in a substantially perpendicular direction, and a releasing position with the bolt retracted into/onto/under the second panel part. In addition, the locking device comprises an actuating mechanism for moving the first locking bolt and the second locking bolt simultaneously between the locking position and the releasing position.
In an embodiment of the toe guard, the second panel part has a forward edge, which is the edge oriented towards the landing. The actuating mechanism comprises an axle pin which is mounted on the second panel part near its forward edge so as to be rotatable about an axis perpendicular to the plane of the second panel part, said axle pin comprising an engaging element whereby the axle pin can be gripped with a tool to rotate it. A turnplate is attached to the axle pin so as to be rotatable together with it. A first rod, at the first end of which is the first locking bolt, is pivotally joined at its second end to the turnplate at a distance from the axle pin. A second rod, at the first end of which is the second locking bolt, is pivotally joined at its second end to the turnplate at a distance from the axle pin on the opposite side relative to the pivotal joint of the second end of the first rod.
In an embodiment of the toe guard, the engaging element is a triangular notch adapted to be gripped with a triangular key.
In an embodiment of the toe guard, the actuating mechanism comprises a spring arranged to force the locking bolts towards the releasing position.
In an embodiment of the toe guard, the axle pin is disposed in about the middle region of the second panel part in the immediate vicinity of the forward edge.
In an embodiment of the toe guard, the first panel part comprises a rear edge, a third side edge with a pin fastened to it at a position near the rear edge, and a fourth side edge with a pin fastened to it at a position near the rear edge. The toe guard is arranged to be supported by a pair of supporting members, each one of which has a horizontal slot through which the pin is adapted to extend. These slots form the aforesaid guide tracks.
In an embodiment of the toe guard, the slot 31 has at its end near the car door sill a downward part, into which the pin falls when the first panel part is in the extended extreme position and which part together with the pin constitutes a hinge about which the toe guard is turnable into an angle relative to the horizontal.
In an embodiment of the toe guard, the first panel part is formed from sheet metal having a first edge bend at either side edge. The second panel part is formed from sheet metal having a second edge bend at either side edge, the second panel part being adapted to fit with a clearance in the space delimited by the first edge bends.
In the following, the invention will be described in detail by referring to embodiment examples and the attached drawing, wherein
The car 2 is provided with horizontal guide tracks 5 secured under the floor of the car and a toe guard 1 is mounted to be supported by the guide tracks 5. In
Being guided and supported by the guide tracks 5, the panel is movable between a stowaway position A and an operative position B, which are shown in
The first panel part 10 can be moved along the guide tracks 5 between a drawn-out position, in which it is drawn out substantially onto the landing floor 6, and a stowed-away position under the car 2. The second panel part 11, being guided by the first panel part 10, is telescopically movable between a retracted extreme position and an extended extreme position. In the retracted extreme position, the first and second panel parts are disposed in a mutually nested and/or super-posed relationship (
The toe guard 1 has been adapted to permit its use when the distance h between the car 2 and the landing floor 6 is of the order of about 50 mm at a minimum and about 1 m at a maximum. Preferably the toe guard 1 is only used when the car remains at a maximum distance of 800 mm above the landing floor. If the car is at a distance exceeding 800 mm above the landing floor, then the car must first be lowered to the level of the landing floor before the passengers are allowed to get out of the car.
Referring to
The toe guard 1 is used as illustrated in
Referring to
The first panel part 10 comprises a rear edge 26, a third side edge 27 with a pin 28 fastened to it at a position near the rear edge, and a fourth side edge 29 with a pin 28 fastened to it at a position near the rear edge. The toe guard 1 is arranged to be supported by a pair of supporting members 30. Each supporting member 30 has a horizontal slot 31, through which the pin is adapted to extend. The slots 31 form the afore-said guide tracks 5.
At the end near the car door sill, the slot 31 has a downward part 32 into which the pin 28 falls when the first panel part 10 is in the drawn-out extreme position. The downward part 32 and the pin 28 together constitute a hinge about which the toe guard can be turned into an angle relative to the horizontal.
Referring to
It is obvious to a person skilled in the art that the invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, in which the invention has been described by way of example, but that many variations and different embodiments of the invention are possible within the scope of the inventive concept defined in the claims presented below.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20061138 | Dec 2006 | FI | national |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | PCT/FI2007/000279 | Nov 2007 | US |
| Child | 12487062 | US |
